Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY) Reaches New 12-Month High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Cathay General Bancorp hit a new 52-week high, trading as high as $56.86 and last at $56.3750 on active volume.
• The bank reported a quarterly beat with $1.29 EPS vs. $1.19 expected and revenue of $213.2M (up 14.4% year‑over‑year); analysts forecast about 5.4 EPS for the year.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.38 (annualized $1.52, ~2.7% yield) and its board approved a share repurchase plan, while consensus analyst coverage remains a Hold with an average target of $52.00.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $56.86 and last traded at $56.3750, with a volume of 539192 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $56.41.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on CATY shares. Piper Sandler boosted their price objective on Cathay General Bancorp from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Cathay General Bancorp from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $52.00.

Cathay General Bancorp Trading Down 0.1%

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The company has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.62 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $51.12 and a 200 day moving average price of $50.02.

Cathay General Bancorp (NASDAQ:CATY - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The bank reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $213.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $211.27 million. Cathay General Bancorp had a return on equity of 11.37% and a net margin of 23.79%.Cathay General Bancorp's revenue was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.98 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Cathay General Bancorp will post 5.4 EPS for the current year.

Cathay General Bancorp Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 9th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 26th were paid a $0.38 dividend. This is a boost from Cathay General Bancorp's previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 26th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Cathay General Bancorp's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 31.34%.

Cathay General Bancorp announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Thursday, April 23rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $150,000.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to purchase up to 4,164,630.6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Cathay General Bancorp

In related news, SVP May K. Chan sold 558 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.00, for a total value of $31,248.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 2,693 shares in the company, valued at approximately $150,808. The trade was a 17.16% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Chang Liu sold 4,836 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.35, for a total value of $243,492.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 127,819 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,435,686.65. This represents a 3.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 4.85% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Cathay General Bancorp

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CATY. Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 101.8% in the 3rd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 781 shares of the bank's stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 394 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $43,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 979 shares of the bank's stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. Danske Bank A S acquired a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Cathay General Bancorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $76,000. 75.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Cathay General Bancorp

Cathay General Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Los Angeles, California, trading on NASDAQ under the symbol CATY. Its principal subsidiary, Cathay Bank, provides a full suite of financial services to commercial, institutional and retail clients. As a community-focused institution, the company emphasizes relationship banking and tailored solutions for businesses and individuals.

Founded in 1962 by a group of Chinese American entrepreneurs, Cathay has expanded from a single branch operation in downtown Los Angeles into one of the largest Asian-American banks in the United States.

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